Trial of mom accused of killing son delayed by KZN hospital bed shortage

The Durban mother accused of murdering her 7-year-old son could wait as long as six months for a psychiatric evaluation at the Fort Napier mental hospital‚ which is battling a critical bed shortage.

Megan Prins‚ 34‚ was arrested at a guesthouse in the plush Umhlanga suburb last month after allegedly drugging and suffocating her son‚ Sloan‚ in one of the suites.

The Durban Magistrate’s Court heard on Friday that Prins had fallen into the queue for her assessment‚ which entailed one month of supervisory detention at the centre in Pietermaritzburg.

She will remain in custody at the Westville Prison until her evaluation‚ with the state strongly opposing her release on bail.

Prosecutor Vaneshree Moodley told Magistrate Mahomed Motala that the state was making every attempt to secure a bed for Prins‚ who before her arrest worked as a nurse.

Moodley also asked Motala to caution Prins who allegedly verbally abused the father of her child in phone calls made from prison.

Due to the bed shortage at Fort Napier and her continued incarceration ahead of trial‚ Motala said Prins would have to fall into line.

“The state as well as your attorney and myself would very much like to move forward with this‚ but unfortunately we need to join the queue with this. There is a shortage of beds and you need a bed for an entire month‚” he said.

Prins was remanded in custody and will appear again in court on August 13.